Throughout the world, gold has been a symbol of wealth and power. It has been revered, worshiped, and sought after for thousands of years. In an article on gold in Bronze Age Ireland in Archaeology, Jason Urbanus writes:
“Gold has long played an important role in human societies. Its color, malleability, and resistance to corrosion have given it unequaled desirability for personal ornamentation and currency.”
The Gem and Mineral Hall in the Los Angeles County Natural History Museum contains a display of more than 400 gold specimens. This is considered one of the finest and largest gold exhibits in the world.
Gold was among the earliest metals used by humans. It is relatively easy to work and, unlike many other metals, it can be found in a pure state. Gold’s initial use was probably ornamental.
According to the website Only Gold:
“Gold became a part of every human culture. Its brilliance, natural beauty, and luster, and its great malleability and resistance to tarnish made it enjoyable to work and play with.”
In many cultures, gold and objects made of gold became things of great value. By 700 BCE, the first gold coins appeared. Gold, of course, was one of the powerful motivators of the European invasion of the Americas, the extermination of Native Americans, and the establishment of Indian reservations in the United States. Gold brought Americans to California.
According to the Museum display:
“An ounce of gold can be hammered into a 100 square foot sheet.
An ounce of gold can be drawn into a wire 50 miles long.
Gold weighs nearly twice as much as the same amount of lead.
Printed circuitry in computers is often made of gold.
Gold protects astronauts from intense heat and brightness in space.
Nearly all of the gold ever mined is still in use.”
According to the Museum:
“Pure gold is a rich yellow color. In nature gold is always mixed (alloyed) with silver. The more silver it contains the paler is its color. The purity of natural and refined gold is usually expressed in ‘fineness’. For use in jewelry, gold is alloyed with other metals to increase its hardness or to change its color. The purity of jewelry gold is expressed in ‘karats.’”
Silver
More Museums
Museums 101: Gems and Minerals as Art (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: California Gems and Minerals (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Hixon Gem Vault (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: South American Gems and Minerals (Photo Diary)